Chapter 205: Fifty-Fourth Floor, Beyond the Barrage (2)

“Yeah, I know. My son-in-law works as a slave overseer.”

“Oh, right! I forgot about that. So, what’s this ‘sky’ they’re talking about? Surely it’s not something like the ‘fucking heavens’?”

“No, it’s something about the nine heavens. He said the god’s name is the Sky of the Nine Heavens, Kal-Lain.”

I came to a halt, focusing entirely on their conversation.

“The Sky of the Nine Heavens? What an odd-sounding name. Why hasn’t our Glorious Decay dealt with him yet?”

“Apparently, the church has summoned the kings for a continental conference, or so my son-in-law claims.”

“Really? That’s good to hear! But isn’t it a bit late? The South’s already in shambles because of those slave scum.”

“There wasn’t much anyone could do. Who would’ve guessed it’d come to this? Their god has been gone for ages, and we only recently found out the horned ones have a new god.”

Horned ones. It seemed the slaves they referred to were a completely different species. I could feel the hatred and disdain radiating from their words whenever they mentioned the slaves.

One of them exhaled heavily, their sigh laden with frustration. “Still, the church is stepping in, so I hope they resolve this soon. It’s hard to trust the slaves in Palaman anymore, especially if they mention some god we’ve never even heard of.”

“Agreed. Just to be safe, I killed all the ones in my household. My daughter is home alone. Who knows what those slaves may try to pull?”

“Then who is taking care of your chores?”

“I hired a housekeeper, even though it cost a bit more. What choice did I have?”

“Wow, that is bound to burn a hole in your pocket.”

Having listened to their exchange, I began piecing together the situation in this world.

On the surface, Kalain appeared to be invading this realm. However, reality was more nuanced.

Slaves.

One of them had nonchalantly admitted to killing their slaves simply to avoid feeling uneasy.

Kalain isn’t invading another world with an external army.

The conflict remained within a single world, a war between two species that had previously coexisted. The enslaved species seemed to have formed a group to resist their oppressors, and Kalain appeared to be supporting the slaves.

Put in simple terms, the oppressed were fighting for their freedom.

As my thoughts churned, my brow furrowed.

Kalain’s words replayed in my mind.

“Once this floor is over, you may not remember me. But it’s fine. I’ll remember you, and I’ll come to get you out of here someday.”

He had been a challenger, just like me.

Of course, that didn’t mean he had faced the same trials I had. In fact, the ones he had described seemed entirely unfamiliar to me.

Still, it wasn’t as if he had shared every detail of his journey. Perhaps, he had cleared many of the same individual challenge floors I had. Or maybe his trials had been different, but we had passed through many of the same worlds.

As I continued to ponder, a realization dawned on me. While Kalain hadn’t necessarily experienced the exact same trials I had, he had almost certainly encountered this world, likely witnessing the suffering of the slaves.

Judging by the way they spoke, the inhabitants of this city clearly regarded these slaves as less than human.

I didn’t doubt that Kalain had vowed to free them, just like he had promised me.

Although I couldn’t be certain how long ago Kalain had ventured to this world, it seemed he had returned to fulfill that promise. Assuming that premise held true, he had chosen to stand with the oppressed.

I can’t be a hundred percent sure, though.

My thoughts were based solely on the conversation I had overheard. For all I knew, the inhabitants of this planet could be as evil as the Nazis or the KKK.

Alternatively, Kalain could have manipulated certain events to bolster his own power.

Well, if I wanted to clear my confusion, I would have to interrogate them myself.

“Did your son-in-law say he would pay you?”

“Yes, he did. Honestly, I’m lucky to have him as a son-in-law.

Urk

!”

“What the—

ugh

!”

I stepped out of the shadows and seized the two inhabitants' necks. Their casual admission of slaughtering slaves had made my grip tighten reflexively.

I had no intention of holding back.

The two beings writhed in my grasp as I dragged them into a deserted alleyway. I could only hope that their species didn’t share their hatred for slaves.

***

[Survive the bombardment and escape the city. Time remaining: 3 hours 42 minutes.]

The interrogation didn’t take long; my gauntlets proved to be an excellent persuasion tool.

Leaving them bruised and swollen, I discarded their unconscious bodies in the corner of the alley. Ensuring that these two weren’t massive outliers, I accosted another three citizens for cross-verification.

It didn’t matter if someone found them. I had no intention of saving these creatures anyway.

What I had uncovered during my interrogations was far worse than I had anticipated. These beings weren’t just vile, but beyond reprehensible. Hearing their mythology and origin stories obliterated the last shred of sympathy I had felt.

“In the beginning, the evil and demons consumed all. Then came the Glorious Decay, banishing evil and creating us. Realizing their sins, the demons begged to be our slaves.”

The “evil” and “demons” in their mythology were clearly the original inhabitants of this world. After the Glorious Decay expelled the native god, it enslaved the world’s original residents.

Of course, the endless conflict between the gods was the root cause behind everything. These beings, indoctrinated from birth, couldn’t entirely be blamed.

However, I felt no desire to save them.

Sexual abuse, slavery, extreme oppression—they all carried it out as though it were perfectly normal. They beat, killed, and violated the slaves, treating them worse than garbage. The systemic discrimination here made Earth’s racism or India’s caste system look mild in comparison.

Although the trial’s objective was clear, there was no mandate that I had to save them.

The oppressed slaves and their oppressors.

However, that didn’t mean I wanted to side with the slaves either. They planned to bombard this city, suggesting they weren’t innocent, either.

Regardless of my choice, war and death would continue to consume both factions. Kalain had already chosen to stand with the slaves.

A war fueled by hatred was inevitable, and I had no intention of supporting either side.

For a fleeting moment, I considered saving just the slaves in Palaman. Upon realizing how that notion conflicted with what I had just realized, I quickly dismissed the thought.

I can’t let myself default to underdogma

[1]

. Not all slaves are inherently virtuous.

Just as some citizens in Nazi Germany helped Jews, there were likely individuals among these beings who treated slaves with kindness. I couldn’t selectively save only those individuals. After all, I had killed innocent individuals while climbing.

Despite Kalain’s involvement, this war belonged to this world alone.

As an outsider with limited knowledge of its history, I had no right to interfere and no desire to.

“Haaa.”

I still didn’t feel at peace with my decision, though. Regardless of cause or circumstance, remaining silent meant leaving sentient beings to die despite my ability to save them.

Even though I wasn’t at fault for this world’s situation, a sense of irritation bubbled within me.

Why is the tower forcing me to make such twisted decisions?

Perhaps because I had just encountered Kalain, his words lingered in my mind. The root of this world’s misery was the endless power struggles among the gods.

Then why do the sentient beings beneath them always suffer the consequences?

Many were never given the choice to decide which god to follow, or even whether to follow one in the first place.

If a world lacks a god, the tower will descend and force one upon it. And if the world does have a god, the inhabitants are bound to that god.

Just like Kalain had proposed, if the tower and the gods didn’t exist, sentient beings across all worlds could live in greater happiness. They would still squabble among themselves, albeit without the shadow of an all-powerful being over their shoulders.

Looking back at Earth’s history, countless people had already perished under the banner of ideology, faith, and kings. Despite that, the addition of the tower and the gods’ conflicts seemed unbearably cruel in comparison.

Most sentient beings probably won’t ever realize any of this.

Yet, as someone privy to the full truth, it was impossible not to feel a profound sense of injustice and sorrow.

Knowledge is a double-edged sword. The more you understand, the more pain it can bring.

Even so, I didn’t wish to emulate Kalain and aim to destroy the tower and every god.

As evidenced by beings like Doppy and Fenrike, many gods shared meaningful bonds with their followers and lived harmoniously.

What are the odds I encounter a trial featuring Kalain shortly after I met him? Wait...

The tower had revealed Kalain’s backstory and struggles. It showed me that he was not merely an evil god but a more complex figure. It felt almost deliberate, as if the tower had planned for me to see this.

At the same time, I couldn’t help but recall the warm, gentle voice I had heard when I first chose not to activate my status screen.

Does the tower want me to follow in Kalain’s footsteps? Even at the cost of my own demise?

I didn’t know. Even if that was the tower’s intent, I had no intention of mirroring Kalain’s actions.

Whatever his purpose may be, Kalain has already become a monster. He is now a being who devours any god, regardless of how benign they are, in his quest to destroy the evil that tormented him.

As these thoughts occupied my mind, I realized that I had already returned to the alley where Doppy waited.

Faint murmurs reached my ears.

“Is it true?”

“Yes. You have... potential... to be... a master...”

“Teach me next time!”

Once I grew closer, Doppy noticed me and waved energetically. “Su-Yeok! What happened? You said you’d venture outside the city. Why are you back so soon?”

“I thought about it, and I realized there’s no need to go alone. Let’s go together.”

“Alright!”

Seeing Doppy’s bright smile, my earlier thoughts only solidified further—he smiled even more radiantly when talking about Fenrike.

Killing benevolent gods or witnessing their followers' despair felt like burdens I could never bear.

***

[Survive the bombardment and escape the city. Time remaining: 3 hours 9 minutes.]

Doppy and I had seated ourselves on a northern hill overlooking the city. The sprawling urban landscape was in full view, a city doomed to destruction. However, it was still breathtakingly beautiful from afar.

Exactly fifty minutes had passed since I entered the fifty-fourth floor.

Suddenly, sirens began blaring throughout the city.

WEEE WOOO

—

The piercing sound echoed even to our vantage point.

“

Air raid alert. Air raid alert.”

“

Citizens of Palaman, this is the City Defense Agency. This is not a drill. Effective immediately, an air raid warning has been issued across the city. I repeat, this is not a drill.

”

Simultaneously, hundreds of flashes lit up the southern sky.

The bombardment ended up being a literal bombing, although given the advanced technology the city possessed, I had suspected as much. The floor’s name made perfect sense.

Missiles streaked through the sky, resembling shooting stars as they descended. The sheer scale of the barrage made it absolutely clear why the tower had tasked me to rescue citizens rather than fend off the attack—I couldn’t physically counter this attack, even if I utilized every ability to the max.

WEEE WOOO

—

The sirens howled once more.

“

Citizens in densely populated areas, please evacuate to underground shelters or personal bunkers immediately.

”

“

Air raid alert. Please evacuate. Air raid alert. Please evacuate.

”

Bright flashes erupted one after another from the center of the city. Their missile defense system, similar to one I had heard about during my time in the military, had activated.

Despite that, the floor’s premise made it clear that the city would inevitably fall. The sheer number of missiles in the sky ensured that outcome.

Boom, boom, boom!

Explosions rocked the southern sky as missiles collided midair, creating countless plumes of smoke.

Yet hundreds of other projectiles pierced through the smoke, hurtling toward the city.

Doppy called sorrowfully, “Su-Yeok.”

I didn’t turn to look at him. Instead, I quietly observed the unfolding chaos below.

Thud, thud.

The ground faintly trembled beneath us. Screams and cries, full of hate and fear, mixed with the smoke slowly spreading over the city.

***

「Invisible message: Challenger Kwon Su-Hyeok didn’t save a single citizen, completing the hidden mission ‘The Bystander.’ All stats increased by 3.」

「Invisible message: Silence can sometimes be a form of salvation. Savior is now lvl 7.」

1. The belief that the weaker or oppressed side is always right and virtuous, simply because they are the underdog, regardless of the full context. ☜